Football at 60: Age does not inhibit this Kerala truck driver from displaying his skills

James PH dribbles, chests and kicks the ball as though he were in his 20s.

Te football World Cup 2018 is drawing to a close, but the spirit of football is nowhere close to cooling off.

In Kerala, even the government is joining in the fervour. The tourism department of the state has launched a campaign to woo tourists to the football haven. The hero of the campaign is 60-year-old truck driver James PH, who shows off his impressive football skills in a video from the campaign, posted on the department’s Facebook page.

Called Soccer at 60, the video shows James playing – and watching – football with youngsters from his village in the district of Wayanad. “Though I might lack a bit in speed, I play the entire match with them,” he says in Malayalam.

A star player of the local team in the 1980s, James talks about the passion for football increasing over the years, with technology making it easier to watch favourite teams in action.

“We would walk kilometres to catch a World Cup match on a small black and white TV,” he says. “Today, every little town has so many big screens for the public.”